Shallow Water Winter Kill Comeback

Often times, shallow prairie lakes less than 8ft deep can offer some great panfish. The downside is, these fertile lakes can also freeze out or winter kill every 3-5 years.

Once it winter kills, it becomes a forgotten lake and usually is driven by without any thought. With the help of the DNR and stocking programs, these lakes can be brought back in a few years.

I have had my eye on a few of these lakes that hopefully will be rebounding soon, but still be forgotten by the majority of fishermen. By using the information provided by the DNR website you too can find some of these lakes.

I fished a lake last fall looking for walleyes and I caught a few and I was excited to try it this winter. After my first outing, I was surprised on the quality of the fish. I caught perch up to 12.5 inches and the pike are plentiful and fat from eating all the smaller pesky perch.

Between the couple guys that I was with, we caught a total of 7 pike, all over 30 inches, on our jigging spoons. Next time you drive by that lake that in the past, winter killed, give it second thought. Do a little research and get out there and pop some holes as you might be surprised.

Oh did I mention I found a few walleyes too.